Mobeen Azhar has made a documentary about the male sex workers of London, with which he spoke to QX about our back pages. The main documentary airs this Saturday on World Service, and a pre-cursor ‘5 Live Investigates’ programme went out last week. We spoke to Mobeen to find out more about his work, the programme and what he discovered about male escorting…
To start off, can you tell us a little about yourself…
I’m a journalist and film maker. I worked at the BBC for about 8 years and now make programmes for lots of different broadcasters.
What inspired you to make this documentary?
About two years ago I was with a friend who was studying for his Phd. He casually mentioned that he had been funding his studies through sex work. I was genuinely shocked that someone so close to me was selling sex. My first reaction was to tell him to stop, but once we really talked it through I began to understand his perspective. The sale of sex is something I have a personal interest in, too. When I was a student a man offered me £4,000 to sleep with him. I come from a pretty traditional family so my natural response was to turn him down and run in the other direction.
Did you have any preconceived notions about male sex workers before you began your research?
I did think that most sex workers must have deep rooted issues and perhaps addiction problems. Some of the escorts I met confirmed these notions. But many of the men I spoke to were actually self-assured, intelligent and happy with their working life. I think working in the industry is difficult, not least because there is such a stigma. Drugs are a massive problem, too. But some men can make it work for them, in the short term at least.
Did you have to make sure that the producers didn’t just want to shock or demonise?
‘Boy for Rent’ was originally going to be a television documentary. I spent over a year trying to get it commissioned by different outlets both inside and outside the BBC. I was told by one television executive that audiences prefer gay men to be be ‘shiny and funny’. It was actually the World Service that commissioned ‘Boy for Rent’ in the end. That’s great when you consider the network has a huge audience in Asia and Africa and the programme will be heard by listeners who have no idea about the London escort scene.
“The programme explores stigma, disease, drug use and the daily working lives of these men.”
On the 5live programme (broadcast on Sunday 5th January) how did you feel host Adrian Goldberg treated the subject of male sex workers?
I have a lot of respect for Adrian. He’s a very established journalist and often he can be the voice of middle England. I think he approached the subject as a robust journalist and asked the questions that the audience would want him to ask.
Did you get any severe homophobia on the texts/emails?
There is always some homophobia when such issues are covered. There’s always Islamaphobia when I make programmes that involve the Muslim community. I welcome people venting. If someone’s taken the time to offer feedback, even if it’s abusive, it’s because they feel threatened or because their assumed logic is being challenged. I think that can only be a good thing.
Will the World Service programme be a markedly different angle?
‘Boy for Rent’ is a sixty-minute documentary that explores the lives of four London based escorts. I’ve spoken to men from Australia, Brazil, France and the UK. The programme explores stigma, disease, drug use and the daily working lives of these men.
You also made a documentary on ‘Gay Pakistan’ and the underground nature of homosexuality there, what draws you to these subjects?
‘Inside Gay Pakistan’ came about because I was working in Karachi on a documentary about adoption and I was struck by how different the ‘scene’ is there. I do think some gay men in the UK can have a narrow definition of what gay identity is so it’s great to be able to shed light on people on the fringes and explore gay life beyond Soho.
And finally what’s next for you after making these reports?
I’m making a documentary right now about Mail Order Brides from Eastern Europe. Later this year I’m planning on making a radio documentary about child marriage in Yemen. I’d also like to do something about the explosion in chems use and sex parties in London.
• ‘Boy for Rent’ will air on BBC World Service on Saturday 11th January at 9am, and will be available to listen to on iPlayer after.
• The 5live Investigates pre-cursor programme is currently available on iPlayer.
• Find Mobeen Azhar on Twitter at @Mobeen_Azhar
